A last-minute amendment to the final draft of the bill included a provision that allows for the U.S. attorney general and secretary of state to stop any pending legislation against the Saudis. The section that was quietly inserted into the legislation — “Stay of Actions Pending State Negotiations” — allows the secretary of state to simply “certify” that the U.S. is “engaged in good-faith discussions with the foreign-state defendant concerning the resolution of claims against the foreign state.”....

A key Senate Committee has included an additional $55 million in federal funding for the mounting health needs of workers exposed to toxic substances during rescue and clean up following the Sep. 11 attacks on the World Trade Center.

The money would be used for treatment, screening, and monitoring administered by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. The bill would require the Department of Health and Human Services to expand the program beyond rescue workers to provide services to area residents, office and commercial workers, volunteers, students, and other individuals who were exposed to environmental hazards.

Senators Hillary Rodham Clinton and Charles Schumer said the legislation would provide comprehensive medical services for the thousands of ill and injured as well as the development of long-term, comprehensive screening and monitoring.